


Glory Days

by InterPlanetaryGirl



Series: Where the willingness is great, the difficulties cannot be great. [5]
Category: Captain America - All Media Types, Iron Man - All Media Types, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, Laura Barton is awesome, Not Steve Friendly, actually Bucky is good, at all, but the others? nah, for the small part he has, i think, not team Cap friendly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-03
Updated: 2017-11-03
Packaged: 2019-01-28 18:28:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12612724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InterPlanetaryGirl/pseuds/InterPlanetaryGirl
Summary: “Why? Why?!” she yells through the speaker, and it almost feels as though she’s there with him with sound quality. “Maybe because you ran off after your so-called retirement and put Captain America before your entire family, yourthree children, for the chance to go on a mission half-cocked without knowing any of the information! Trying to relive theGlory Daysbefore your arrows are finished firing from the last one!"***This is really just the series so far, kinda, from the Rogues' pov, though mostly Steve, as well as a couple of other things happening





	Glory Days

**Author's Note:**

> This has a lot of Rogue Avenger bashing so...like... If you like those guys then you just reeeeally don't wanna be readin this

Before Steve knew it, nearly a year had passed since the so-called Civil War. It hadn’t been difficult to keep up with what was going on in America with regards to the Accords - T’Challa had made sure to keep them updated, because once they were fixed they were going to be allowed back to the country as long as they signed, with a few conditions. 

Steve really didn’t see what the huge deal was, Tony was in the wrong. They were going to kill Bucky and he had to stop that of course, because he was innocent. People needed to understand that and they wouldn’t if Tony were involved because he was too invested in it, had too much personal gain from Bucky’s imprisonment. 

“Excuse me?” Steve questioned, raising an eyebrow at the King of Wakanda. 

“Barnes is going to be put under psychological evaluation as well as having a therapist to help him work through all the trauma he will undoubtedly experience once he awakes again,” the king told him. Bucky was still in cryo, and would be until they reached the US now, apparently, despite them having worked to get rid of the triggers. 

“Why?” 

“Because he has suffered a great deal, that much cannot be denied, but it will not be healthy or  _ safe _ for him to go without treatment for the PTSD he will have. Among other things that may be wrong with him,” T’Challa explained. 

“He’s perfectly fine, nothing’s wrong with him now that the triggers are gone.” 

“The doctor’s and Barnes will be able to judge that for themselves, I assure you Mr Rogers. As for the rest of your team, certain conditions will have to be met at certain time-points, I’m sure you understand-” 

“No, I’m not sure I do understand,” Steve interrupted, and carried on with his point despite the obvious gritting of teeth that the king was doing. “What do you mean conditions?” 

“Ones that the rest of the Avengers will have to go through as they join: therapy, training, meetings with lawyers, court cases et cetera,” he said, before moving on. “But that will be all, this conversation is over, and your flight leaves this evening at  prompt.” The king turned and left then, leaving Steve to be the one to relay the information back to the rest of his team. 

Truthfully the flight back was hell, more than anything. It was a simple flight, on the Wakandan version of a quinjet, one they had designed themselves, meant for missions abroad but no sign of comfort. 

T’Challa explained it that, they’re a small country, and they have kept to themselves for so long that there was no need for comfort flying for anybody aside from the king, and they weren’t going to be using his and his family’s personal jet to return to the US. Especially when the king himself wasn’t going - he had more important things to attend to according to his sister, the Princess. 

So, here they were now, just having gotten off their flight woozy, slightly uncoordinated, mentally exhausted, and overall tired. 

Once they were all stood in a group to where they were directed by the guards, a man stepped towards them from where he was near several cars. 

“Welcome back gentlemen, ladies,” he said, nodding to them. “My name is Sergeant Jones, and I’ll be the one to take you to the Compound and explain everything once we’re there. After that, I shall take my leave and Colonel Rhodes will be the one to give you the tour,” he explained. 

“Alright, lead the way,” Steve said, waving an arm to the parked vehicles. They’d already taken the initiative to move Bucky, who was still in the cryo tube, into the back of the only van they had brought. Sergeant Jones spared him a glance before doing as told and getting them all situated. Two guards in the first two cars, taking Sam and Natasha, and Clint and Steve himself, the last was for Wanda who had four guards if you were including the driver. 

Wanda didn’t look at all happy about it, but Steve sent her a look which told her to stay calm until they were back at the Compound and they would discuss it later. She complied and went along with them but clearly wasn’t happy about it. 

The drive was somewhat long, and nobody really spoke, in any of the cars at all, so overall the atmosphere was uncomfortable for the members returning, but the guards were clearly at ease. 

* * *

“Welcome back to the Compound,” Jones said once they were all walking through the entrance. “First we’ll go over the rules and regulations of you being here, the conditions of course, and then Colonel Rhodes shall give you the tour.”

“Where’s Tony?” Steve asked. 

“Currently Mr Stark is dealing with some personal business, as I understand it, I don’t know anything more than that. He will be joining you and Colonel Rhodes at some point however,” Jones explained, before leading them into a conference room close to the door and motioning for them all to sit down. “Now, moving on. None of you will be signing the Accords as of yet,” Jones ignored the sigh of relief that came from the group. “Instead for these first four months will be used as a trial period. If everything goes as it should, meaning all of you behave and stick to your rules. Within this four month period you will be watched closely and monitored for your behaviour and how you go ahead with your mandated therapy. At the end of these four months or at any time prior to this, if you are deemed unfit for the Avengers, then you will not be signing the Accords but you also won’t be able to remain in the Compound any longer as you would no longer even be considered for the Avengers. This of course means that anything you try to do with regards to what could be Avengers business is against the law and you will be charged as criminals. This is the only second chance you will have.” 

“Why can’t we just get our title back? We already were Avengers,” Steve pointed out.

“You went on to become terrorists, and several of you were never even on the first list of consideration. Aside from that, all Avengers must go through this system. At the end of the four months, if you are still offered the chance to sign the Accords, you will then be considered Avengers. As for the mandated therapy, everybody will have to do this. The business you are in as Avengers is very dangerous and can come with a lot of mental complications later on. We want to lower the amount of PTSD and anxiety that is being faced in here to help you move along. As such, you will be assigned specialised therapists who once worked for SHIELD and are therefore used to dealing with this kind of work. However, the fact is that you were terrorists, and because of this the Council is unable to trust you. Even after you finish your mandated four months, if you sign the Accords then you will still be monitored for another eight months. If at any time you step out of place, unless there is an extreme emergency, then you will be kicked out and never be considered for the Avengers again.” 

“Who’s here to watch over us?” Clint asked. 

“Mr Stark has been kind enough to provide an AI for the Compound, named Jocasta. The council has informed both her and Mr Stark of what behaviours the Council doesn’t approve of and if she witnesses any of these behaviours then she is to report them to us with video evidence of them happening and either her or Mr Stark’s justifications for the reason. The Council will look over the evidence and come to a decision.” 

“Who else lives here?” Wanda asked. 

“Nobody else resides here permanently,” Jones informed them. “The ones here most often are Mr Stark, Colonel Rhodes, and The Vision.” Wanda perked up at that. “Spider-Man also comes here some days with Mr Stark, for various reasons, including training. Other visitors include Bruce Banner, the Hulk, his cousin Jennifer Walters, aka She-Hulk, Daredevil who, while known by the Accords team, does not wish to be known by anybody other than a select few people he chooses to reveal himself to, as well as various others who have signed the Accords in some format.” 

“Is Spider-Man an official Avenger now?” Clint scoffed. 

“Yes, and no. The Council and Mr Stark are currently in the process of hashing out the final details of a new contract to be part of the Accords, but the gist of it is that if somebody is a minor, then they have to have somebody to vouch for them to confirm with the council that they are a minor still and once they reach their majority they must reveal their identity to the Council so that information can be confirmed about them. Once they turn eighteen they  _ must _ sign the Accords or face the consequences same as everybody else. Mr Stark confirms that Spider-Man is still a minor and so he still has until he turns eighteen before he reveals his identity. It will not be revealed to the public at any point. Not only that, but Spider-Man won’t be called in for any official Avenger missions unless Mr Stark or Colonel Rhodes deems it enough, according to Mr Stark he enjoy looking out for the little guy.” 

“Sure he does, he’s tiny himself,” Scott comments. 

“As such, I imagine Spider-Man will not reveal his identity to you, or interact with you much at all. He trusts very few people, and he always wears his costume when officials are here, or simply stays out of sight,” Jones continues as if uninterrupted. 

“Do  _ you _ know Spider-Man’s identity?” Natasha asks with a raised eyebrow. 

“I do not. As I said, he’s either in full costume or out of sight when officials come around. He’s very close with Mr Stark however, as I’m sure you can imagine. There is one last thing, however. Unfortunately Mr Lang, you broke your parole before going to fight in the so-called Civil War, as such you will be spending six weeks in prison as it did not count as any of the charges you were freed from upon your return to the country.” 

“Wait, you’re saying he has to go to prison for six weeks before he can come here?” Clint asks incredulously. 

“Unfortunately for him, yes. It is a reduced sentence however, and he will only need to be monitored for three months rather than the standard four. Is that agreeable with you Mr Lang?” 

“Uh...sure,” he answers, almost hesitantly. “It’s not as though I have much of a choice.” 

Jones smiled. “One of the cars is still waiting for you outside. Is there anything you would like before you leave?” 

_ A phone call to Cassie, _ he thinks instantly, but doesn’t say anything instead, just shaking his head and standing up to leave. One of the guards from outside the door walks with him. 

“I must ask, do you all understand the rules?” Jones asked. 

“Be on our best behaviour, do as we’re told, go to therapy, sign the Accords when the four months is up,” Natasha listed off. 

“Yes. Your therapists will also be judging if you are fit for the team as well, and if you are not then we will help set you up with something away from the Avengers though perhaps still inside government, depending on your person. If something else is...required, however, your therapist will tell us.” 

“Something else like what?” Steve asked sternly, not liking that idea. 

“Well, for example Miss Maximoff, if it turned out she could not control her powers to the full extent then it is likely she would be sent to Charles Xavier’s school for mutants, though she is more a mutate. There she would either learn to control her powers or they would be locked away,” he explained. 

“You won’t take my powers from me!” Wanda says, practically screeching as she jumps up with red at her fingertips. Jones doesn’t step back, but he did swallow slightly nervous when he glanced at them. 

“And we’re...hoping that we won’t have to, however that still remains to be seen,” he tells her, and Natasha reaches over to place a hand on her forearm with a look to calm down. 

“Now, Colonel Rhodes will be arriving in just a few minutes and I’m sure Mr Stark will arrive sometime during the tour of the Compound.” 

* * *

“There’s no questions about you not being allowed in Tony’s wing of the Compound, of course, and trying to get in there will result in Jocasta alerting both Tony and myself or Vision,” Rhodes was explaining as he led them through the compound on his wheelchair.

“Why does he get a whole wing to himself?” Clint asked. “Especially since Jones or whatever told us that he isn’t here all the time.” 

“Because it contains his office and lab space, as well as personal rooms. Do you need any reason other than the fact it is his?” Rhodes asked with a raised eyebrow. “It’s also where he meets with a lot of the officials or makes sure that everything is organised. Not to forget the fact he owns the building, he didn’t have to even host you here but he did anyway,” Rhodes pointed out. “Also the fact that when he does come, Spidey spends his time there.” 

* * *

“Honey Bear, you ready for therapy? I think I’ve almost got it completed,” Tony announces as he walks into the room they’re currently in, one of the many sitting rooms, this time in the med bay. Tony stopped as soon as he saw them and stiffened slightly but looked past them.

“Not right now Tony. Give me fifteen minutes.” 

“Alright, I’ll be waiting. I have some upgrades planned for the braces so I can write those up while you finish up here and I’ll meet you in the usual room.” Rhodes nodded and led them out of the room as Tony walked out through a side door to the room, not sparing them another glance. 

They’re led around another two floors quickly before being led to their main wing, where all their bedrooms are kept. 

“What’s up with Tony?” Steve asks, just as Rhodes is about to leave. 

“I don’t think I know what you mean, Rogers,” Rhodes retorts, and Steve almost rolls his eyes - he can see from the corner of his eye that Clint doesn’t have quite the same restraint. 

“Why was he acting like that? He just completely ignored us.” 

“I can’t imagine why he would  _ want _ to talk to you. The only reason he’s here at all this early is because the Council told him to be here. Otherwise he wouldn’t be here for another two hours because he has better things he could be doing with his time. However, he’s here now so we’ll have extra time to work on the leg braces which are helping me learn to walk again, since without them I’d have less than twelve percent of a chance to walk again.” Rhodes says the words so casually, but he can see Sam flinch minutely at the implication.

* * *

“Miss Maximoff I suggest you stand down and refrain from using your powers on Doctor Stark,” Steve hears, albeit quietly, from somewhere in the Compound. He assumes it’s the AI, Jacqueline, or whatever. It’s not even lunch yet, and soon enough he hears a crash. “Sir, I have contacted Doctor Strange for in case something like this happened as per instructions,” the AI announces just as Steve walks into the trashed sitting room where Tony is dressed in half-formed armour from different accessories he was wearing and Wanda has red swirling all around her hands and upper body with a snarl covering her face.

“What’s going on here?” Wanda almost jumps at the question and seems to calm down for the most part with a sweet smile directed at him. 

“Stark started it!” she insisted, pointing, not waiting for Tony to defend himself. 

“Yeah, real mature Witchy, but I did not and there’s video evidence of it. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to await Stephen’s arrival sometime this evening most likely.” 

“Who’s Stephen, Stark?” Steve barked at Tony as he walked towards the door, who simply raised an eyebrow as he turned at the tone before pausing and then answering. 

“Doctor Stephen Strange, he used to be a neurosurgeon before an accident that took away his ability to use his hands for surgery due to nerve damage. He went in search of a permanent cure and stumbled upon the Kamar-Taj along the way with a couple of hints, long story short he became something known as the Sorcerer Supreme and has magic more powerful than Witchy’s over there, he’ll be able to put wards up or something to stop her using them anywhere except the training room,” Tony shrugs nonchalantly. 

“What?! You can’t do that! That’s taking my powers and you can’t take them!” 

“First of all, they’re putting myself and others in danger, as well as causing masses of property damage already; secondly, you’re abusing the powers that you were  _ so kindly  _ given by Hydra; and thirdly, yes I can, I can do whatever the hell I want to ensure safety in this Compound as it is still  _ mine _ ,” Tony tells her, and then leaves since she’s too stuck in her anger to notice him going. 

After that Wanda begins to cry and so Steve comforts her. She’s just a child, after all, she doesn’t deserve to have her powers taken just for losing a little bit of control. 

* * *

“Tony, we need to talk,” Steve tells Tony the second he enters the compound the next day.

“Oh we do? About what? Are you going to apologize for leaving me to die back in Siberia? How about not listening to me despite the  _ multiple _ deals and chances I tried to offer you?” 

“Look I’m sorry about that okay, but it’s not the point. It’s about what  _ we’re _ supposed to do after these four months are up: the guy from the council told us to not expect them to pay for things after these four months, what is that about?” 

“Exactly what you think it’s about, Rogers,” Tony sighed. 

“What the hell are we supposed to do about providing when we live here and do Avengers work? It won’t work out that we can have day-to-day jobs,” Steve tried to explain. 

“Look, Rogers, I don’t know or care what you’re supposed to do, but all of you need to look at what options you have once your four months are up.” 

“And what about  _ if _ we  _ do _ get jobs! Huh?! What about if we have to do Avengers work?” Tony sighed, obviously frustrated with Steve’s questioning. 

“ _ Look  _ Rogers, you have to find a job to provide for yourself, yes, but there are a variety of jobs out there for you I’m sure. In some fashion. Maybe. Or you could go back to school or something for all I care, but I don’t give a  _ fuck _ , and you don’t seem to understand this. So let me make it perfectly clear: I won’t be providing for your lot once the end of these months come around and you can be sure as shit you can’t go to Pepper for anything as well.” 

“But what about if we’re called in for missions?” 

“Maybe get something flexible!” Tony yells. “I don’t care. Look, ever other Avenger or person who has signed the Accords and comes here on a semi-regular basis has some form of income: me, I run the company, Bruce works for my labs and also has a steady payback for the papers he’s published that have been used in various ways for university classes and what-have-you, he’s also collaborated on a couple of books. His cousin, Jennifer, she’s a lawyer, Daredevil, also a lawyer, Jessica Jones is a PI! People find things to do and they work around their schedules. You also won’t be called in for every single mission. Some of them are unnecessary for you to participate, or don’t require your skillset. The various ways in which I point out to you for how your logic of me constantly providing for you and your band of merry men is flawed can go on and on, but I won’t do it so that’s that, go shove another stick up your ass before coming to me about this again.” Tony walks off without another word, not allowing Steve to get another word in. 

“Jocasta, where is Tony at this moment,” he asks with a frustrated growl. 

The AI says nothing and he growls again. 

* * *

Steve was training with Wanda and Sam on Tuesday after lunch, both of them going up against her so that they could train her ability to attack and defend against multiple enemies at a time, when Tony walked in with a phone in his hand. 

“Clint, Laura wants to talk to you,” he announced, and Clint, who had happily been sitting at the side and watching them with mild interest, perked up and walked over to Tony, barely sneering as he took the phone and walked out. 

“Hey Laur-” 

“No, you don’t get to talk,” she snapped, and Clint visibly recoiled even though she couldn’t see him. 

“Wha-” 

“No, shut up,” she told him. “In approximately two minutes or so there will be a packaging arriving for you, call this number back when it arrives.” She hung up as soon as she said that, not giving Clint time to reply. The next two minutes were some of the longest minutes in his life, he would swear, that he spent pacing up and down the main entrance corridor until the AI announced somebody was at the door and he opened it quickly to sign for the package before taking it to the closest room with a table he could find. 

The package wasn’t large at all, extremely light. He opened the phone back up to call before he started opening it, the phone barely rang for the first set before she picked up. 

“It arrived, then?” 

“Yes, what is it?” he asked, while simultaneously taking off the first lid to reveal a brown envelope sat on top of shredded paper filling. 

“No no, carry on opening it,” she told him simply, and it almost sounded like she was taunting him as she did as much. He did as told and opened the envelope. 

“Divorce papers?” he asked, almost confused. “Why- why are you giving me these?” 

“Because you’re going to sign them and hand them to Tony and then they’ll be filed,” she says easily. 

“But  _ why _ ? I don’t understand!” 

“Why? Why?!” she yells through the speaker, and it almost feels as though she’s there with him with sound quality. “Maybe because you ran off after your so-called  _ retirement _ and put Captain America before your entire family, your  _ three children, _ for the chance to go on a mission half-cocked without knowing any of the information! Trying to relive the  _ Glory Days _ before your arrows are finished firing from the last one! You abandoned us Clint, you left us for no real reason-” 

“They were keeping her locked up!” 

“Who?” Her voice was such a deadly calm all of a sudden that it made Clint almost afraid. Not enough, however. 

“Wanda! They were keeping her trapped in the Compound and she wasn’t allowed to leave!” 

“Yes because she was a wanted terrorist who worked with Hydra and didn’t even have US citizenship of any kind who abuses her powers! And I would hardly say she was trapped,  _ Clint _ ,” she sneered. “I’ve visited the Compound and there is everything she could have wanted and more to provide her with entertainment there. She was hardly  _ trapped _ .” 

“You don’t understand-!” 

“Yes, I do understand! I understand  _ enough _ to know that divorcing you is the right option. So sign the papers, take a picture and send it to the number so I can see that you, in fact, have, not that Tony wouldn’t check anyway, and then go and give them to Tony,” she tells him, before hanging up. 

He stays there for well over an hour before he gives in to sign. He knows Laura, and knows that when she set her mind to it she could - and  _ would _ , that’s the most important part - do anything no matter what as long as she felt it was the right thing to do for both herself and their children. 

He didn’t even read the contract before signing it, not wanting to read what was written before storming down to the main dining hall and slamming it on the table before leaving to go to the training room and blow off some steam. 

* * *

Steve notices what’s wrong later that evening but doesn’t get the chance to ask until the next morning, where he and everybody else find out that Laura told him to sign divorce papers. 

Frankly they were all shocked, that Laura would do such a thing despite the fact that her husband was clearly a hero, that’s what Wanda was telling him often enough. Natasha said she was sorry, along with Steve and Sam, and offered consolations. 

Clint explained that Laura told him to give everything to  _ Stark _ and when the man walked through the door, he was met with red mist and a white wall, blacking out for several seconds with everybody simply watching him from where they stood. 

“What  _ the fuck  _ was that for?!” he asked them as he stood himself up, Iron Man gauntlets now covering his hands. 

“You should not interfere with other people’s lives,” Wanda said, raising her chin and staring down her nose at him as much as she could despite being shorter than him. “You have ruined  _ yet another _ life of a person here.” 

“What did I do this time?” he sneered back at her. 

“Clint’s marriage is over and you are obviously to blame,” Steve said, kindly, rather than how Wanda would phrase it. 

“Uh? How, exactly, am I to blame? She wanted a divorce, I provided her a competent lawyer from which SI has many. Her idea, not mine,” Tony told them. 

“You still provided her the means to do it,” Clint got out. 

“What, by providing her with a job, hell yeah I did! Ross was going to go after her y’know, so I got her away from that. Because you’ve always been the breadwinner of the family, she also needed a job so that she could provide for your children. Yes I helped them out initially to get on their feet in New York and provided her with a job working in PR - because she is  _ amazing _ , simply  _ brilliant _ at dealing with the press, lemme tell ya - but all of the choices she makes are  _ on her own _ Barton, get used to that and deal with it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have business to attend to. Also, Rogers, I just came to suggest you stop trying to get in contact with the Accords people, they’ve told you to make a meeting, so  _ make a meeting _ . They’re not going to move their entire day around, unlike some people, just to try and bend to your will, so deal with that.” He watched them all, especially Wanda, warily as he made his way from the room carefully. 

* * *

They started therapy the next week, and so far it was okay. They had to see them three times a week so far, and while he could say his own was going seemingly okay, he was talking about what the therapist asked him to when he was asked and didn’t interrupt him often, he couldn’t say the same for the others. It was obvious that Sam’s was going well too, but Wanda and Clint were clearly having issues with their therapists if their chosen words were anything to go by.

* * *

“Miss Maximoff, would you please make your way to Conference Room seven-B,” the AI announced. “Mr Jones is here to see you.”

“Why?” she snapped as they stopped their training for now. 

“I am unaware why as I have not been given that information,” the AI told them. “I was simply told to direct you to the room.” 

“Fine,” Wanda bit out, and started to make her way through the halls. 

“Miss Maximoff, thank you for deeming to join us,” Jones says as she enters the room warily. There are three men guarding him, that Doctor Strange that visited last week, and two other people, one of them being her therapist. 

“What do you want?” she asked them, not sitting down when motioned to. 

“We are here to discuss your further...arrangements,” he said, trying to be calm but not kind. 

“My arrangements are fine, I stay here.” 

“I’m afraid that won’t work out. You see, from what we have observed so far, both with videos since you first arrived and your psychological evaluation.” She turns her gaze on the therapist, who gulps in fear at her but raises his chin proudly. 

“What do you mean? There is nothing wrong with my...psych.” 

“That is where you are wrong. You are highly unstable and take to abusing your powers around team members whenever you can - primarily Tony Stark - which is not as often as it could be since Doctor Strange added wards, thankfully, however we know enough. Because of this you will be taken into custody where you will undergo mental rehabilitation to get you back to a more stable mindset. If it gets to the point where you are deemed fit to be around your teammates and the world at large in general, then you shall be granted your powers back.” 

“You cannot take my powers,” Wanda spat. 

“Perhaps not, however Doctor Strange can magically bind them.” 

* * *

“Who are you and what are you doing here?” Steve asked the two strangers making their way down the hall amicably.

“We’re Adams and Kilter,” the female informed him. “What we do here is none of your business.” 

“Yes it is my business,” Steve tells them, crossing his arms in front of himself and planting himself firmly in their way. 

“Well it isn’t, we’re not here for you so you don’t need to know.” With all of the contracts they’ve signed, they actually don’t know how much they can reveal to Captain America, especially considering they know the person who pays them doesn’t like the guy. 

“Look, it doesn’t matter, Jocasta let us in because she knows us and  _ that’s  _ what matters,” the male said. 

“Mr Rogers they do have permission from the Accords council to be here,” the AI promptly informed him.

“Just because Jocasta let you in doesn’t mean that she can be trusted, or you two for that matter,” Steve told them. 

“So...what’re you sayin’?” 

“You can’t be here unless you tell me exactly why.” 

“Well, we’re not gonna tell ya, so we’re at what one would call an impasse,” the woman joked sarcastically. 

“If you try to go any further, then I  _ will _ stop you,” he told them. They both narrowed their eyes on Steve, probably to gauge how serious he was. 

“Oh, and where’re we supposed to go?” 

“Just wait outside, I’m sure you’ll be fine until your….acquaintances arrive, people to affirm what you’re doing.” 

* * *

“Rogers! Where are you?!” Tony yells into the compound, so Steve walks out of the kitchen with his arms already folded over his chest.

“What, Tony?”

“I’ve already told it It’s Stark, whether you put Doctor in front is your choice, but not Tony. And what were you doing leaving the trainers out there? They needed to set things up for the session.”

“They shouldn’t be here,” he says simply.

“Well, you know, they should. Considering they’re training Spidey-Boy behind me and have been doing so for months.”

“We weren’t informed of this and it hasn’t happened the previous weeks,” Steve continued.

“Perhaps, but that’s because training these last few weeks has taken place in the tower. Aside from that, Jocasta was telling you to let them in and that should be reason enough to let them in. Not to mention they’re approved by the Accords council, how else do you think they’d be allowed here?” Tony fires off.

“Well why suddenly move training back here, and why? And AI’s can be hacked, I think Vision’s proved that theory. Also it was never spoken about that there’d be trainers here.”

“That’s because I’m like a junior member, and I have strength I can’t always control, definitely couldn’t control it before they started training me,” the boy, Spider-Man, told him cheerfully.

“A junior member? Of the Avengers? What? How  _ old  _ are you? You realise that this isn’t just some sort of _ club _ right?” Steve vaguely remembers Jones talking about it initially when they were talking about members who visited the Compound on a semi-regular basis.

“I’m still a minor, granted, but I don’t think you have any right to ask if this is a club or not, Mr _ I’ll-come-and-leave-as-I-want _ , I can do that for my school’s decathlon team if I want! In fact I  _ have _ !” Peter bursts out.

“Calm down kid,” Tony tells the boy. “And for the record,” he turns back to Steve. “He has more right to be here than you do, according to both myself and the Accords.” Steve blanches at that because it makes no sense; the kid’s a minor, he just confirmed it himself, how does he have more right to be here than  _ Steve _ a war hero and a recent one too. “Besides, he’s an enhanced individual who’s in the public eye often enough, and obviously enough, that he’s not going to up and decide he doesn’t want this. He’d have to sign the Accords when he turns eighteen anyway just because of that whether he joins the Avengers as a whole or not, unless he wants to give up being Spider-Man.”

“And that’s not exactly about to happen,” Peter laughs mockingly.

“Don’t I know it,” Tony grumbles. “Alright kid, go to training, we’ll extend it a little today I assume?” Tony glances at the trainers who nod a little and the pair walks down to the training room they always use while Spider-Man goes into the kitchen he just left a little further down the hall. 

“Look Tony,” Steve starts, ignoring the glare he gets for using Tony’s name. “What do you think you’re doing bringing a kid into this?” 

“A kid that can still hear you!” he calls from the kitchen, causing Steve to jump because he didn’t think he could be heard all the way down there. 

“He’s got enhanced hearing as well,” Tony points out needlessly. “As for that kid, he was already doing this before I got to him, except in sweats entirely. Frankly, I gave him an upgrade he desperately needed and I’m getting him trained up properly so that he can still stand up to bullies as himself while not injuring them because he can’t control his strength. I’m being the responsible one here.”

“No you’re not, you’re just encouraging bad behaviours.”

“Yes because Mr I’ll-pick-fights-with-anything-that-moves from back in the forties totally was responsible about who he stood up to,” Tony rolled his eyes and tried to move out from in front of Rogers but he wouldn’t back up.

“I wasn’t picking fights with things out of my league.”

“I’m sure I’ve heard from Aunt Peggy the amount you told her you got into fights with guys twice your size,” Tony says mockingly, and Steve is slightly caught off-guard with how he refers to Peggy in such a way. “Always  _ losing _ , of course, because you were the little guy . Plus, the things we face didn’t really exist back then, not on the same level. Red Skull was probably the worst of the worst and that’s just a regular Tuesday for us these days. Need I remind you that there is more than just you who has enhanced genetics for whatever reason, you’re hardly the biggest problem that belongs in a science museum, nor the best, either.” He finally shoved past Steve and Steve didn’t turn around.

When he finally did turn, he also jumped nearly half a foot in the air before reacting on instinct to hit Spider-Man when he saw him dangling upside down right in front of his face.

“I don’t think you quite understand the situation here so I’m going to make it simple for you,” he says, flipping himself the right way to land on the floor. “Mr Stark owes you nothing, and I can throw you through a wall with very little hesitation. After having a storage container dropped on you, and then getting the proper training, it’s safe to say I’ll no longer be pulling my punches.” 

“That a threat?” Steve asks, because sure the kid is a kid, frankly, but he also doesn’t know the extent of his powers or if he’s telling the truth. There must be slight proof to it since he held a storage container above himself when it was suddenly landing on him at the Airport. 

“A warning. You deserve nothing from him, never have quite frankly, and yet you keep trying to push it. Actually I think you pushed it the time that you didn’t listen to reason and law and became an international terrorist, then almost left Mr Stark for dead in Siberia, but sure, let’s say there’s still a limit. I hope you’ll realise it.” 

Frankly the kid truly had no idea what he was talking about and was out of his league being here. 

* * *

“Lang, if you’ll come with me,” Tony said, not waiting for him and walking out as soon as he came in. Scott had only been back twenty minutes from his six weeks in prison and clearly didn’t know how to react, but after a moment of deliberation, decided to jog to catch up with the man as he was led down several halls. 

They reached a door and Tony gestured towards it for Scott to open, which he did. 

The door sliding open revealed a lab. State-of-the-art in regards to most labs across the country but probably not half as good as Tony’s own in Scott’s consideration. 

“Wh-what is this?” 

“Your lab.” 

“ _ My _ lab?” 

“Yes,  _ your  _ lab. Since I have other things to do and can’t devote all of my time to the Avengers, I can’t be the only one who makes and repairs equipment. I know that you have an engineering degree and have worked with Hank Pym, so this will be your job unless you don’t want it. However taking this would also mean that the Council will pay for you to do this and it will be a proper job and there would be no need to go out and find one with the rest of them - which I know they aren’t doing anyway, but you know. You can place orders with Jocasta for things you might need however specialised products need to be approved by me at the very least. Do you accept the job and responsibility?” Tony asked, and Scott stared at him for a moment slack-jawed. 

“Do I accept?! Hell yeah I accept!” Tony left Scott then, telling Jocasta to inform the others if they wanted to find Scott at all. 

* * *

Bucky was taken out of cryo stasis after they’d found ways to remove his triggers. He had all of the memories still and had to go to therapy every day for now, but ultimately he was okay now. He was quieter and more thoughtful, or at least it seemed thoughtful, and he spent a lot of time reading and catching up on what he missed.

* * *

A couple of uneventful months pass. They meet a few of the other Avenger recruits and, even though they show clear distaste, try to not let it affect their judgement. Wanda hasn’t been returned to the Compound yet, but they say she will be within two weeks which is good.

It hadn’t necessarily been a good two and a half months either, because they were still getting nowhere with supposedly getting jobs and moving from the tower, and Tony was still not offering to help them at all, although Scott had received permission to stay in the Compound due to also working there in the labs so it made sense, he would just pay rent apparently, to the Council. 

Scott tends to spend a lot of his time in his lab, creating the things he does and updating weapons they have, sometimes calling Cassie. He had been working on developing their weapons with what knowledge and blueprints were made available after he asked for them, and he knows that they’re not the most recent ones but he appreciates Tony giving them to him all the same. 

Clint and Natasha rekindle their friendship and Clint spends time in a lot of high places, while Sam, truthfully, mostly keeps to himself a lot of the time. 

“Did you guys see the paper last week?” Natasha asked when they were all gathered in the main sitting room in their wing. 

“What? About Stark and adoption?” Clint scoffed. “Yeah right, probably just using the kid to get attention.” Steve nodded in agreement. 

“Well there’s a press conference on in a couple of minutes, wanna see what he has to say?” 

“Sure, go ahead.” 

Pepper Potts was on the screen currently, getting ready to talk with a sweet but stern smile on her face. 

“Welcome, thank you for coming. Now, you’re all here because of the rumours of Tony Stark adopting a child arose and everybody has questions - of course, they’re entitled to them, especially with somebody who is in the media as much as Mr Stark. However, we ask that you approach this subject with the utmost respect and don’t ask questions that are far too invasive. Any slander written after this conference will be taken care of swiftly and without hesitation, so please think before you publish what you’re writing about today’s events.” Pepper then walked to the back-left of the stage as Tony walked onto it. 

“So we all know why we’re here and I’m going to clear everything up,” Tony started. “You all seem to think I’ve adopted a kid, which,” he turned to Pepper, “do we know why that is yet?” Pepper shook her head minutely, but Tony seemed to shrug it off. “Well, I’m here to clear it up: I’ve not adopted a kid. I’ve adopted two teenagers.” The entire group’s mouths seemed to fall open at that, now knowing how to react. “Their names are Harley Keener, seventeen years old, from Tennessee, and Peter Parker, sixteen, from Queens. I knew them long before I adopted them but they were my sons long before we made it official. I’m sure Pepper already briefed you on the rules for questions, so ignore them and you won’t have a career anymore,” he told the crowd happily, and then two boys walked onto the stage dressed in smart-casual clothing, but more casual. 

As soon as the smaller one, Peter, they figured out quickly, spoke, Sam grew a look on his face as if confused but recognising something. Scott was very much the same.

Questions were asked and it wasn’t until the near end when Steve figured it out: “Spider-Man!” he practically yelled. “That’s who it is! He sounds exactly like him, think about it, they seem to have the exact same body, the same voice, the same defense and humour it  _ seems _ like so far,” he explained. “And when we were at the airport the kid told me he was from Queens.” Natasha’s eyes widened along with others of the group. 

“Of course,” she breathed. 

“Guys, that kid is how we get what we need from Stark,” Steve told them. 

“What?” Scott asked, clearly confused. 

“The kid obviously doesn’t know what he’s doing, being  _ sixteen _ , and being a superhero, so obviously Tony messed with his head before he could see the truth, maybe if we get the kid to listen to us we’ll have somebody to back us up and another person to see we were right,  _ and _ Stark will have to bargain to get his kid back.” 

“Steve you’re right! If Tony cares about those kids at all, especially if the kid is Spidey, then he’d do anything to get him back just to look good in the public, no matter how genuine it does or doesn’t look.” 

“Exactly, and then he’ll listen to us and give us what they want. You heard it, we have one month to plan.” 

“That’s plenty of time.” 

Steve knew it, now they would get Tony to listen to them about the Accords, and it didn’t matter what the rest of the ‘heroes’ said, because if Iron Man was back with the Avengers, the original Avengers, then they wouldn’t be able to be stopped. 

* * *

James Buchanan Barnes sat in the room, making almost no noise aside from his near-silent breaths. He didn’t say anything, knew he couldn’t because either way they wouldn’t listen to him. Stark helped him, and he knew that it was Stark’s kid under the suit already, basically, just by seeing them interact. He likes them, and when Stark updates his arm, the kid was always there with most of his costume on but mask rolled up to his nose, and he would be fascinated by it. He was a good kid. But he had to do something, or the kid wouldn’t be safe.

**Author's Note:**

> Sooooooo this ended up being a HELL of a lot longer than I intended, even with the massive and awkward time skip I did at the end there, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway, and please comment/kudos if you did! 
> 
> In other news this took me so long to write! I was initially like "hell yeah I can get this done now and I can post it in the next couple of days!" like right after I posted my last one, bc I'd already had plans for it and then it got to writing it and I wrote like a quarter of it before being like ".......nah." and left it alone for a few days and figured I should finish it. I feel I should point out that it's like...2-30am here so like...yikers and all that. 
> 
> Anywho, I watched Wonder Woman for the first time today and was massively blown away, haven't done the assignment I was supposed to for class due in yesterday but it's cool bc as long as I do good I get away with it, them's basically the rules. Anywho. Yeah. I'm making Bucky a good guy in the sequel to this. And I did use words and passages for when they crossed over in time-periods bc it made sense to do so more than anything. I feel like there's a lot more to say but....oh well. 
> 
> ps my tumblr is @sweetassaliens so do what you want with that information :)


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